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Brighton

James P. Kaetz, Auburn University

Brighton is located in south-central Jefferson County in the central part of the state. It is named for the seaside resort town on England's southeastern coast.

History

The town of Brighton arose along a streetcar line built by the Bessemer and BirminghamRailroad between those two cities in 1889. Lots were sold along the line beginning in 1892, and by 1901, some 100 families lived there. Brighton incorporated that same year and was home to several grocery stores, a furniture store, and other businesses by this time. In August 1908, African American miner and labor activist William Miller was arrested as a suspect in the bombing of another man's home; he was taken from the jail by a group of white townspeople and lynched. In 2015, the Equal Justice Initiative dedicated a historic marker at the location.

The town's economy was closely linked to the Woodward Iron Company from its earliest days; when the company closed down in 1979, the town suffered a severe economic downturn. In August 2011, the city defaulted on $1.12 million in warrants issued in 2003.

Demographics

Brighton's population according to the 2010 Census was 2,945. Of that number, 81 percent identified themselves as African American, 13.8 percent as Hispanic, 6.5 percent as white, 1 percent as Native American, and 0.9 percent as two or more races. The town's median household income was $25,929 and the per capita income was $14,858.

Employment

Brighton's workforce in 2010 was divided among the following industrial categories: